Contagion
by isphira
Summary: An exiled Ichigo has died and has mastered all his powers and besides eternal boredom, things look good. But when Seireitei has run into trouble of its own making, they need Ichigo's power as a vaizard to save them. The very same powers they banished him for. Irony, anyone? -Sequel to 'Calm After the Storm'
1. Interlude

Contagion

Interlude

The doors of the gate from Soul Society shut with a resounding finality. Seven figures walked in complete silence toward the ladder at the far end of the Tessai-made cavern.

Their appearance was apparently a surprise to the proprietor of the store since he had not appeared to meet the group when they arrived. They caught him sipping tea while Yoruichi in cat form lay on the table; obviously the two had been interrupted in the middle of a heated conversation, if the expressions on their faces was any indication.

"Ah!" exclaimed Urahara excitedly. "What was the final verdict?"

"You're going to see a lot more of me from now on," said Ichigo evenly. Urahara's grin faltered.

xlx2xlx

"I'm going to live out the rest of my life in my body as normally as possible."

"You'll still fight hollows though, right?"

"Yeah, it'll be like before Rukia was carted off, juggling school and shinigami stuff."

xlx3xlx

The mask crumbled again and Ichigo, panting heavily, gazed calmly at the leveled cliff.

'_Finally,'_ he thought.

"Well done Ichigo!!" bubbled Shinji exuberantly. "You've mastered cero, bara, and the gran rey."

"What's next?"

xlx4xlx

"Oomph! Oh! Oh my, I'm sorry! Gah, I'm such… sorry! I'm a klutz!"

"No problem, really," Ichigo stooped to pick up his books needed for his next class. He looked up and was struck dumb by the sight of her. Long black hair tucked behind her ears, porcelain skin, deep, forest green eyes.

"I'm Yashiro Kei, nice to meet you. I'm the principal's new secretary."

"Er, Kurosaki Ichigo. I teach English. Nice to meet you."

xlx5xlx

Ichigo dipped into his power again, calling on the right amount with his bracelet-induced control.

"Dominator! Mask of flesh and blood. All living beings. Fluttering. That which has the name human! Truth and temperance. Slightly imbed your claws into the walls of innocent dreams. Destructive Art 33! Blue Fireball!!" True to its name, the kidou shot at the rock formation in a blue flash of orb-like flame and a cluster of rock exploded.

"Hmm… not bad for the first try."

"I've seen it shot before, I oughta know how it works." Ichigo sat cross-legged opposite Tessai.

"You have come a long way from your first lesson, but there is still much to learn. Remember…"

xlx6xlx

"Come on, seriously?! I never would have guessed!"

"It's true. I picked up a Japanese translation one day and I loved it, so I eventually decided to get better at English so I could read his works the way he intended."

"Wow! That must have been hard. I didn't think you have that much of an attention span."

"I'm wounded, really. But anyway, it was worth… it…"

"Ichigo?"

"You know what, Kei? Let's forget about the movie and hang out at the arcade instead?!"

"What? We're way too old for arcades!"

"You're never too old! Come on!"

The hollow's roar slowly faded into the evening noise of downtown Karakura.

xlx7xlx

Kurosaki Kei pressed her lips gently to Ichigo's and he picked her up and carried her to their new bedroom. He set her down on the edge of the bed and placed his hands on either side of her hips. She pulled his shirt off, and then gasped in shock.

"Ichigo! What happened?!" Reluctant to let the mood go to waste, Ichigo continued removing buttons, but he could hardly ignore her.

"I told you about the car accident I was in as a college student."

"I had no idea it was this bad!"

"It's fine, really." He kissed her insistently, silencing any coherent speech for the rest of the night.

xlx8xlx

He gripped the medallion tightly in his fist as he knelt before his best friend's altar.

The brute had jumped in front of a car to save a little kid. He would have been fine if the resulting pileup hadn't been so bad the ambulance couldn't make it through.

Five other hands gripped his shoulders, all were silent.

xlx9xlx

"Okay, really. What's up with today? Is it our anniversary or something?"

"Of course not, but I did get you a present." Ichigo stared at his wife of three years.

"It's not another 'I'll get him a gift so I can use it' present, is it?" Kei didn't bother to respond besides look (cutely, Ichigo thought) exasperated and held out a plain, thin rectangle box with a simple red ribbon wrapped around it.

Ichigo guardedly opened the box and a tee shirt was delicately covered by bright tissue paper. He shook out the black shirt and noted Kei's mischievous face.

The shirt read: World's Greatest Dad!

xlx10xlx

Ichigo and Kei walked into their home, arms around each other. Isshin glanced up from his game of 'Knock-'em-down' with five year old Yachiru and saw the barely restrained grief in their faces. Yachiru noticed her parents had walked in as well. She bounded up to them and grabbed their clothes in tiny fists.

"Where's my new baby?" she questioned innocently as she tugged on the cloth in her hands. Ichigo tightened his arms around Kei as she weakened.

Kei choked out, "Your baby brother isn't coming home, honey."

xlx11xlx

"Well, I'd say it's about time, Ishida. What took you so long?"

"I had to learn how to cook. I don't care what other people say, I wouldn't survive married life if I didn't."

"Mmm."

xlx12xlx

Mizuiro stood ceremoniously from his seat at the circular table. "I now recognize all members to be accounted for. We may—whoa!"

"Sit down and order! Seriously, stop hanging around Keigo so much. I wouldn't think that after all these years of exposure you would start to succumb to his idiocy," deadpanned Tatsuki.

"Hey! I have a sense of humor, thank you very much! And besides, didn't you hear?"

"What? Hear what?" Ignored by everyone Keigo began to make desperate shushing motions with wildly flinging arms.

"Keigo's finally got a girl!!"

Silence.

"Is this that sense of humor you were talking about, 'cause that's not funny."

"Hey!!" Keigo huffed indignantly. "At least I'm in a steady relationship, unlike some people I know."

"I'm stable; I just have more that one." Miziuro stated smugly in his own defense.

Tatsuki spoke her peace as well. "And I've never really cared about all that romantic junk anyway."

Ichigo, silent until then, got a mischievous glint in his eyes. "But really Mizuiro, you should brush up on your material."

"Your think so?"

"Argh!!"

xlx13xlx

He felt a strong jolt of excitement, trepidation, and fear travel down his spine and land in a sickening knot in his stomach as Kei watched him expectantly. The memories of the shinigami in the hospital room taking his baby away wouldn't leave his head clear enough to answer his patiently waiting wife. Ichigo swallowed thickly against his constricted throat, and Kei reached to grip his hands in her own.

The ex-shinigami glanced up and perceived Kei's own fear, but also her desire and her hope.

"Okay," he whispered. "Okay."

xlx14xlx

"Jii-chan!!"

The childrens' screams rang through the whole house with a ten year old Yachiru and a three year old Taka quickly following. Isshin scooped them up as soon as they reached him.

"My babies! My darling grandchildren!" The now old (but no less eccentric) man nearly toppled over from the sudden weight. Sixty-one years old was just about too old to be exercising like this, but he would never complain.

"They're all yours, Pops."

"Yes, yes, enjoy yourselves, why are you still here? Wait, what number is it this year?"

"Thirteen years," was barely spoken before Isshin was at that same wall poster, but this time with a giggling Yachiru on his back (a familiar ache beat in time with Ichigo's heart) and an upside down Taka in his arms.

"Oh, Masaki! My boy has been a husband for thirteen years!!" Taka started squealing in breathless delight.

Ichigo and Kei glanced at each other and the telepathy that came with so many years of marriage told them now was the time to make a smooth escape.

xlx15xlx

"I really can see ghosts, Dad! And so can Taka!"

"I believe you, no need to get defensive." Yachiru blinked in surprise at her father's cool acceptance. She had expected at least a _little_ skepticism.

"You do."

"It runs in the family."

xlx16xlx

Ichigo stared at the stiff teen in front of him shamelessly. The poor boy fidgeted on the edge of the chair, looked at his watch.

"She'll be down soon," smiled Kei sympathetically.

Ichigo narrowly glanced at his wife, a hint of betrayal in his eyes, then turned back to the boy.

"I want her home by ten."

"Yes, sir." A nervous gulp accompanied the words.

"Dad, are you harassing my date again?!"

"Not at all. We were just having a heart-to-heart."

xlx17xlx

"How can you possibly be dying?! You _are_ dead! Aren't you in a gigai?"

"Don't be daft, son. When you first met Rukia, remember her gigai would have drained her reiryoku until she was human again. I provided Kisuke's reason for a test drive of the first model." He continued after his words met silence. "For future reference: despite Kisuke's brilliance, the first wasn't perfect. Instead of draining away my power in the process of making me human, like Rukia, the gigai merely trapped the majority of my power in the new flesh. Consequently, the process made my reiryoku genetic and the source of all your power in turn."

"… So you're going to die. Again."

"Eh, it's not so bad. At least I know where I'm going!"

"…"

"I'm sorry, son."

xlx18xlx

"Taka!! What happened to you?!" The startled and panicked cry from Kei was ripped from her when she saw her youngest kicking off his shoes at the front door.

"Fell off the curb," he muttered through gritted teeth, and swiftly ascended the steps to the second floor.

Ichigo walked in from the kitchen and made a snap a decision. He put his hand on Kei's shoulder and held her back from following.

"He looks horrible, Ichigo!"

"I'll take care of him," he said swiftly, and went to locate the first aid box in their bathroom. After the short detour, Ichigo knocked on his son's bedroom door politely before letting himself in.

He closed the door before turning to size up Taka's visible injuries. A rapidly bruising right eye, cheekbone, and lower lip were the only bruises decorating his face. Shallow cuts accompanied his lip and the eyebrow above the coloring eye. A bleeding fist resting on the mattress next to thigh illustrated the teen's self-defense.

Taka looked down at his crossed legs. His father crossed the room in a brisk manner reminiscent of his sisters' efficiency in _his_ father's old clinic. Sitting on the bed next to Taka, Ichigo opened the first aid and opened a roll of gauze and an antiseptic wipe before catching the teen's chin to turn him to face the impending treatment.

Ichigo made small talk while he cleaned up the blood. "It's the hair, right? I had the same problem when I was your age. Some wannabe thug named Ooshima had the balls to say I was copying his bad dye job." He continued with tales of his teen years to distract his son.

"No trouble breathing, abdominal pain, anything?" A brief shake of Taka's head reassured Ichigo that no internal injuries had been dealt to his son. After inspecting his hand for broken bones and when the last butterfly bandage had been applied, Ichigo sat back and considered.

"You're not mad or anything?"

"Hardly. That'd be a bit hypocritical on my part, wouldn't it?" A brief pause. "I can teach you to fight back, if you want."

Taka shot an incredulous look at his father before smirking smugly. "You? Teach me?"

"Hey, give your old man some credit. I know a few moves."

"… Could you really? I've never seen you fight… I wouldn't want to _hurt_ you or anything."

"Duly noted. We start tomorrow after school."

xlx19xlx

"Grandparents, huh?" Kei snaked her arms around her husband contentedly. They lay in bed after hearing the big news of the day. Ichigo ran his fingers through her hair and stared at the ceiling.

"Were getting old, Ichigo," Kei whispered.

"Yep."

xlx20xlx

"Well, Takeshi, it's good to know orange isn't fading out," said a grinning Ichigo. He held his newly-born great-grandson in his arms. He continued to murmur encouragements and advice for the coming years to the sleeping baby.

xlx21xlx

Kei opened her eyes and looked around. _'I never realized I sleep-walk…'_ She saw her bedroom as it usually was, and she was standing next to her side of the bed.

One look down told her she wasn't sleepwalking.

Her hand shaking, Kei reached for her lying form, unnaturally still, next to Ichigo. She phased through her body without a rustled breeze to show for her effort. Trying hard not to panic now she attempted the movement again, with the same results. She took pride in the fact she hadn't screamed her head off. This time she reached for Ichigo and she jerked in surprise when her hand bumped against his chest.

She shook him gently, albeit somewhat frantically and he mumbled. Kei jostled him again and called his name, the instinct to whisper in the dark of the night driving her to not talk aloud despite the fact no one would hear her now.

Let Ichigo hear her, please…

Her sleepy husband cracked an eye open and was immediately wide awake at the sight of her.

"Ichigo…" she said in a quivering voice.

"Oh, baby," Ichigo whispered and reached for her. He held her to him as he climbed out of the bed and moved to the living room. He sat on the couch and held her tightly as she cried into his chest.

Once tears had dried and Kei had settled down enough for a conversation, she didn't hesitate to quiz Ichigo. "How are you able to see me, or hear me, or touch me? The kids can see ghosts, but you never even hinted that you could as well."

"I… It's a long story."

She looked at him as if he was the stupidest male in the world. "I think I have more than enough time to listen to a long story." Thoroughly chastised, Ichigo told her everything about the guarded secrets of his life: Rukia, Soul Society, his struggle with his hollow, his exile, everything.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Kei asked in a flat voice, her anger given away by her effort to keep her voice even.

"I guess… I… I didn't think you'd believe me, for one. Besides, that's all in my past. You were my future and I've never been one to dwell."

"But… all this time!!"

"Please, you have to understand. In my mind I chose the lesser, and safer, of two evils. I either lied to you," at that Ichigo winced at the callous word, "or I told you and inevitably drew you into the trouble that always follows. I could _never_ do that to you or our family." Kei was silent as she fingered the chain bracelet on his wrist. She noted the gold medallion hanging from where the necklace was threaded through the links.

"S-so this, and your scars, are your past?" Ichigo didn't answer, let her think. "I'm so sorry."

At this Ichigo blinked his surprise. "What for?"

"For everything you've had to go through!! When I get to Soul Society I'm gonna give them a piece of my mind!" Ichigo sputtered for a minute before falling silent. He enveloped her in another hug.

"I have never regretted my actions, even when I decided to hide the spiritual aspect of my past. Never doubt that. I love you more than life, you know that?"

"Of course. So tell me more about this Rukia person. I rather like her."

xlx22xlx

"Trust me, kid, you don't want to 'stay here like me.' It's boring," Before Takeshi could say anything else, Ichigo stamped his forehead and with a flash of light the boy was gone.

xlx23xlx

So this is the tedious part, huh?" Ichigo confirmed dully. Urahara nodded once, and Ichigo continued.

"I've trained in hakudo and zanjustu until I could best you and Ururu-chan. I can whoop Tessai-san at kidou and I catch Yoruichi playing tag. My hollow powers are perfectly mastered, including rapid regeneration at will." He sighed and glanced at the shop owner. "Anything else you can turn me into?"

"I'm afraid not."

"Hmph. I'm gonna talk to Zangetsu and think up some new tricks."

"The basement is always open!" Ichigo waved without turning around to acknowledge the words and disappeared down the hole in the floor.

xlx24xlx

Urahara waved his fan idly, deep in thought about the troubles haunting Soul Society.

Ichigo didn't seem to hold any anger towards the spirit world any longer, but the ex-taichou believed Ichigo had become skilled at hiding any emotion related to that place.

Sometimes he could see the betrayal lurking behind his eyes, but it was hidden, or smothered, quickly. Ichigo knew it would do no good, so he buried it deep.

Urahara thought maybe for later use.

Well, from what was being reported lately from Soul Society, that anger may have a conduit to exhaust itself. Either way, Ichigo would start to see more shinigami approaching. Not officially, of course.

Ururu set a steaming cup of tea in front of him and the manager ruffled her hair. She blushed cutely and walked out again, grabbing the broom on her way.

It would be a long wait, but eventually Soul Society would come to Ichigo for assistance if they couldn't handle the problem.

Ichigo wouldn't have to be bored for long.

* * *

Now, for the AN of DOOM!!!

Hello again everyone!! I'm back for the sequel to Calm After the Storm!! As you can see, this is an interlude/intermission for the years that I didn't cover for in between CAtS and its sequel, Contagion.

FYI: the story itself is just over 2,900, a _bit_ long for a mere prologue –scoff-, which is why I didn't call it that.

I numbered the sections to tell what they were easier, which won't be the case in later chapters, there were simply too many here. Here are some of my thoughts and theories on certain sections that I thought you would like to hear more about:

Any section about his training – I think that Urahara wouldn't allow the original bracelet to be left on. It would be too dangerous for Ichigo, since his reiryoku would be completely bound, so I figure he would make a copycat that Ichigo could take off, and automatically let a miniscule amount (still a good amount at this point) of his power through so that he could defend himself if the situation is dire. This new bracelet and the cavern being the ultimate hiding place for an exile's training (remember Ichigo was never found while training for his bankai in the Soul Society version, why would the copy be any less awesome?!) could allow Ichigo to train in peace.

The bracelet – This is a pet peeve of mine… Ichigo isn't bad at sensing reiatsu at all!!! For goodness sake, he could sense the little boy half overlapped in a parakeet body, remember?! The problem with Ichigo's control is how difficult it is to control the huge amount of it. This is a common theme in manga: Naruto has all that stamina, but hardly any control over his charka. This is the same deal with Ichigo. The new bracelet, while binding his reiryoku, gives him a smaller amount to work with, thus helping him develop his control when he is training. The old would never have let him develop his control if it stayed the same level.

2 – I think that after Ichigo got serious about Kei he finally decided to let Soul Society do it's job and could finally let go of all the baggage that came with his exile. It was still a good nine years before he could bury his anger. Hunting hollows would have been an outlet until then, and by proxy, snubbing shinigami by getting to the hollows quicker. He didn't want to drag Kei into his dangerous second life like Orihime and Tatsuki and all the others were.

6 – For those of you that don't remember or didn't read it, Ichigo's bio in the manga stated that the person he looks up to is William Shakespeare… well, I figure, how can you look up to the man without knowing any of his work, and then I took it to the next level and made William the reason he teaches English. Ooh, trivia for all the folks still reading: William means 'protector,' which I thought was cool. And in the spirit of names, Chad means 'warrior.' How's that for irony, huh?

7 – My theory on scars: If the scars of the battle for Rukia (when Ichigo got the crap beat out of him) showed on Ichigo after he had taken the pills Urahara gave him, then all other scars he had gotten would show up as well with the exception of the injuries Orihime's power 'heals'. She doesn't really heal, as Ulquiorra says, but she only rejects the injuries altogether, as if they_ never happened_. So no scars.

10 and 13 – I wanted to break up the happy life a little bit, because not all lives are good. As you see, Ichigo's had a normal life (which I think helped him to deal with the exile and thoughts as to what would happen to him) and let's face it, no life is perfect. Yachiru's birth was rough, but the newborn had complications afterwards as well, which led to his death.

18 – I think this section really shows how much Ichigo loves and understands his family. He cleans Taka up without judging and listens and offers help instead of scolding right off the bat.

21 – I made Kei purposefully a little like Rukia, which is a lot more apparent here, only because Ichigo bonded so well with her. I think there could have been romance between Ichigo and Rukia if there hadn't been such an age difference… not to mention the _dead_ factor.

24 – This happens right before Contagion picks up in the first chapter. I added it in for more of a smooth transition into present time.

Here's a time line for all of you who are a little curious as to how this all ties together:

Ichigo's 16 – Chapter 9 of CAtS  
17 – training for kidou  
21 – training for vaizard stuff  
25 – meet Kei (26)  
27 – marry Kei  
29 – Chad's funeral  
30 – Yachiru is born  
32 – Ishida and Orihime marry  
35 – second child dies  
37 – Taka is born  
40 – 13 year anniversary  
49 – Isshin dies (70, Ichigo born - 21)  
59 – grandparent (Yachiru – 29)  
85 – great-grandparent/ Takeshi is born  
89 – Kei dies  
91 – Ichigo dies/ chat with Urahara  
99 – Takeshi dies (13)/ CAtS Epilogue  
113 – 'Contagion' begins

So that's all for this prologue/intermission/interlude thingy. I hope that answers some of the lasting questions from CAtS. Any others, please review.

You know what, review anyway!!!!

Oh, hey, the disclaimer: Don't own it. I'm not nearly brilliant enough and I can't draw worth squat… -pout-


	2. Chapter 1

Contagion  
Chapter 1

**It waited.**

**It didn't matter how long it would take, but its purpose forbade it from acting rashly. Impatience would ruin it, causing alarms to rise prematurely. That **_**could not**_** happen.**

**So it waited for the perfect opportunity.**

**And it was rewarded for its patience.**

**Yes, this one would do nicely.**

xlx- 15 years following Calm After the Storm: Epilogue -xlx

He walked along the roof's edge following the steady stream of children as they walked leisurely to the elementary school, careful about prying eyes looking up and seeing him. It was a fine line he balanced on. His… descendants (although he hated the word; it made him feel old) had carried on his legacy of seeing 'ghosts,' which wasn't surprising.

Since his idiot father became human again and had children, his latent abilities had been passed to Ichigo and his daughters and their respective children gained the extraordinary gift to see 'ghosts' as well as _their_ children.

So Ichigo was hiding in not-so-plain sight, making sure his great-great-granddaughter was delivered to school safely.

Sometimes it struck Ichigo how odd that sounded, especially when he was thinking of his family and caught a glimpse of himself in a reflection. With the appearance of a twenty-four year old, it was quite humorous. He almost forgets to laugh every time.

In any case, Ichigo glanced down the street and saw they had arrived safely. He smiled when she was accosted by her friends, already popular.

The shinigami jumped away, following the same schedule he had followed for over a decade. He peeked into the schools and offices of his family, always careful to stay out of sight. No one needed to see a look-alike of their grandfather in weird traditional clothes haunting them; which is essentially what Ichigo had been doing.

Not that they needed to know of course.

Halfway across a jump from one building to another Ichigo's head jerked to the left. Making a foothold under his right foot he kicked off to the street below and used shunpou from there.

As far as he could tell, this was nothing compared to his usual enemies, but if the war had taught him anything it was that hollows usually have nasty tricks up their metaphorical sleeves. A simple mistake could sometimes be an unwary shinigami's undoing.

A plume of dirt and rubble shot into the air and Ichigo poured a little more power into his steps. He quickly reached for Zangetsu and before the frog-like hollow even registered the threat Ichigo had cleaved it neatly in half.

Resting Zangetsu's tip in the thick grass of the lawn, the man leaned casually against his old friend.

"You know, we seriously need a challenge… I'm not being cocky, old man, I'm just saying normal hollows are too mundane to be any fun anymore… Almost makes me wish Grimmjow had survived… No shit! Of course I was just joking… stay out of this, you idiot… don't ma—"

"Kurosaki Ichigo."

In less than a blink of an eye swords clashed with a resounding ring and sparks flew haphazardly. "I see your instincts have not dulled."

Ichigo growled and shoved away from the shinigami he had not seen for nearly a century.

"It is very rare for one to see such an intimate connection with one's zanpakutou as—"

"You shouldn't be here, Byakuya. Why have you come?" he snarled at the captain before visibly calming somewhat and sheathing his blade. He walked away, intent on ignoring the man behind him, not really caring if he answered. Byakuya, a little stunned at the mood change but ever the stoic aristocrat, he lower his own weapon and followed.

"One would think you would have tried to kill as soon as I approached." Hearing the evasion for what it was, Ichigo sneered over his shoulder before ascending an invisible staircase toward the nearest rooftop.

"Would you prefer that? I wouldn't mind."

"Hardly."

"Hmm, your choice, I guess," said the exile with a careless shrug. Byakuya looked hard at the seemingly relaxed man inadvertently confusing the hell out of him.

"You are not the same Kurosaki I remember." This elicited a mocking scoff before they jumped over a few rooftops.

"You expected an arrogant brat, screaming profanity and cursing the world for causing all his misfortunes? Please, am I obliged to perpetually behave like a sixteen year old? I grew up. Married, had kids, lost loved one, some of them I sent to you myself." With that Ichigo hopped over the edge, waving reluctantly for Byakuya to follow as he dropped. The dignified taichou peered over the edge to see how far the 'substitute' had fallen. It wouldn't do to seem ungraceful and fall too far.

Fifty feet below Ichigo was waiting for the aristocrat to catch up and Byakuya followed the vaizard's gaze through the window to see a familiar mop of bright orange hair above a flimsy wall.

"My nephew. He has some reiatsu, enough to see a few of the weaker souls wandering the office, but not enough to sense me, being Yuzu's grandson and all." He waved a hand dismissively. "Hopefully he'll get that promotion he's been working at." He didn't notice the slightly incredulous stare sent after him as Ichigo allowed himself to fall the remaining distance to the crowded street (being careful to avoid crushing anyone).

They walked in silence the rest of the way towards what Byakuya now saw as their destination, a small park. Ichigo removed Zangetsu to rest him against the back of the bench he sat down on. The red-head studied Byakuya over crossed arms.

"Tell me why you're hear, Byakuya, or I will attack you and do you the discourtesy of letting Urahara experiment on you." The two regarded each other coolly, neither giving away their thoughts.

Behind his nonchalant exterior, Ichigo's brain was in hyper drive trying to deal with so many mixed emotions roaring through him. Shocked surprise that Byakuya (of all people!) had come to him, relief no one else had come with him, a grudging respect the taichou had had the guts to come at all, and that simmering rage that always made itself known when he thought about anything dealing with Soul Society. Hell, the only reason Ichigo was sitting here at all was because Byakuya and a few of the other taichou had supported him through the sham of a vote.

But wasn't bitter, not one bit.

Well…

The regal man sighed resignedly in a rare show of emotion. "I am obliged to precede my reason for being here with a question." He was clearly hesitant and tense. Ichigo marveled at this amazing view of the stern, cold, aristocrat dropping his guard, and his amusement showed clearly until Byakuya asked his all-important question. Byakuya was currently going through all Rukia's advice. 'Manual to Ichigo: Surviving' had been helpful so far, excluding the illustrations…

"Do you hold a grudge against toward Soul Society?"

Ichigo's eyes widened at the inquiry for an instant before narrowing and a growl escaped, the sound dissonant as it joined a sudden metallic rattle of the bracelet on his wrist. The reiatsu inhibitor glowed darkly. Byakuya assumed (correctly) it would be working over-time to contain the power.

Byakuya stood very still and relaxed when Ichigo rose to his feet and took a step toward him before his head whipped around to redirect his glare to his motionless zanpakutou and it was apparent he was holding a discussion with the sword. The obvious subject of their argument watched closely. Considering the dark flash of Ichigo's eyes, his was not the only less-than-benevolent reaction, but it seemed the hollow inside the exile also took exception to the topic. He was wrenched from his musings by the absence of the chains clatter.

Ichigo ran a frustrated hand through his hair and sat heavily on the bench once again.

"Zangetsu (maddening old man that he is) deems it necessary to expunge the fact it would be unfortunate if you inexplicably went missing, because I doubt you have come following the orders of others."

"Hmm."

"Right. I suspect where this is going, but I'll answer your question anyway. Do I hold a grudge against Soul Society." He was quiet for a moment and he tilted his head back to look and the slowly rolling clouds across the sky. He rubbed his eyes. "I have a grudge against the forty-some bastards that exiled me. I'm not naïve enough or so blinded by anger that I blame the guy selling ramen, though I will admit for a while I blamed his cat as well."

"It didn't appear as though you were as enraged as you claim by the manner in which you departed the chamber, very nearly as if you were attempting to emulate myself."

The younger snorted his amusement (Byakuya hid his disgust at so common an expression). "Hardly. We figured we wouldn't give the bastards the satisfaction of seeing me rampage. You'll never know how close you came to having to elect a new Center forty-something-or-other."

"Central Forty-six."

"Whatever. The point is that I don't blame the whole of Soul Society for the narrow-mindedness of a few." Ichigo finished and watched for Byakuya's answer.

"You truly are not sixteen any longer," he mused and Ichigo rolled his eyes.

"Well, have I answered to your satisfaction or are you going to leave again for a century until you have another pointless question?"

Byakuya, expressionless, got down to business.

"For the past five months the souls inhabiting Rukongai have inexplicably been mutating into hollows."

* * *

A/N: Oh Noz!!! What_ever_ will Ichigo do?!?

I know, I know!! I will allow you all to throw tomatoes at me now, I deserve it for making you wait so long! I don't pretend to have a (legitimate) excuse for being so lazy, so bring it on...

Those of you new to the story, If you haven't read 'Calm After the Storm,' STOP!!!! This is the sequel and this won't make a shred of sense to you if you haven't read 'CAtS' first. (Maybe this warning is a little belated... nah)

So I know this is short, but they will get longer, promise!!

Any concerns???? Drop me a review!! I always look forward to your comments!

Disclaimer thingy: not mine. You can tell because I am not that awesome.


	3. Chapter 2

Contagion

Chapter 2

**Shunsuke yawned lazily as he patrolled his normal route through the familiar dirt paths. He cursed his fuku-taichou to the bowels of Hueco Mundo for scheduling him for double shift, and then immediately cursed himself a fool.**

**Whatever had been the source of the hollows popping up everywhere in Rukongai had thinned all the squads in every division (even fourth) until every last shinigami was pulling double shifts. Shunsuke leaned against a flimsy shack wall and watched the children playing with a worn leather ball, tossing and kicking it to each other as if that ball held all the happiness in the world. **

**The shinigami shook himself from his musings and headed toward the rendezvous point to be relieved of duty. He would have eighteen hours of rest, only to do it all over again. He turned into an empty alley which would cut his travel time by at least half an hour.**

**A frantic hum of his zanpakutou was the only warning he was given before his world was swallowed by an oily darkness, a high-pitched giggle the last sound he heard.**

**xlxlxlx**

"**Damn, I hate this part of the job."**

"**If ya liked it I woulda sent ya ta twelfth division t'get checked out." The shinigami (only two out of dozens more working around them) lined the mutilated bodies along the street.**

"**Why… why so many casualties this time? There has never been so many…"**

"**I don' know f'r sure, but I o'erheard a fuku-taichou talkin'. Said a patroller workin' a double was turned this time."**

"**Shit! So…"**

"**Yeah."**

xlx- Living World -xlx

Byakuya's words echoed in Ichigo's ears. Dead souls were turning into hollows? It seemed impossible, but thinking about it, what did Ichigo really know about what happened when people died and were sent to Soul Society, not to mention the technicalities of konso? It was just one of his duties. He graciously blamed his recent lack of attention on focusing on the living bits of his life and had let the shinigami do their jobs. The last fifteen years had been brutal, trying to get his mind and soul back into shape after decades of mundane existence.

_Okay then, think about this, Ichigo. Konso merely directs them safely to their destination, it doesn't cleanse pluses. That only happens when I deal with hollows, so theoretically the souls sent directly to Soul Society would still be carrying some baggage with them when they go. _

_But turning into a hollow is dependent on the Chain of Fate corroding. Souls in Soul Society don't have bodies to be chained to. It should not be _possible. Ichigo frowned deeply. He needed to know what Byakuya was thinking before giving his own thoughts away.

"Explain."

"The past twenty years have seen the souls of Rukongai growing more discontent. Kurotsuchi-taichou believes this is the reason these souls have mutated."

Thoughts whirled through Ichigo's brain, and he talked through trying to get his thoughts in order.

"You're telling me the all-knowing Seireitei has allowed the 'lower' souls of Soul Society to become _so_ discontent with their sad lives that said souls are becoming hollows? That's great. What do you want me to do about it? Because to me it seems like they had plenty to be _discontent _about for centuries before I came along."

"I remain unconvinced that unrest is causing these souls to have been hollowed, despite Kurotsuchi's claims. The occurrences have begun too recently and with alarming frequency to simply be an attitude problem."

Ichigo snorted loudly. "I was in the slums during the War, seventies-districts and up. Have you ever stepped your pretty feet in these places? I would willingly sell myself as a slave to get out had I ended up there after death. There's already crime and disease and filth ankle deep, hollows are just added variety now."

Byakuya opened his mouth to defend himself against this insult against him, but was interupted with by shrug.

"So what, then, _taichou_? This has nothing to do with me. I'm exiled, remember?"

The nobleman sent a particularly haughty stare to Ichigo. "Exiled as you are, you are cursed to hang between your home and your rightful place in Seireitei. However, if you truly believe that this crisis is removed from you, then you are not the same Kurosaki Ichigo I had come to respect all those years ago.

"I can not believe that the man who guards his family with such attention in this world would ever be able to forget that this is only the first half of the journey. I know that many of your friends and family have passed on, Kurosaki. But your family and friends in the next life are in just as much danger now as your family is here."

Tense silence was caught by the chilly breeze whipping throught the park. Despite wanting to blithely dismiss Byakuya's words, Ichigo felt as chastised as Yachiru when Kei lectured her about breaking her toys in a fit of temper. Really, he should be old enough to know better than this. Then again, Byakuya was still centuries older than himself, Ichigo was probably no older than a child in his eyes. His pride might take a beating, but he knew when he was wrong. He conceded the point with a nod and moved on.

"I'm still waiting to hear why you came to me, Byakuya. What could a mere ryoka do to help that Seireitei hasn't already tried? And I want an honest answer, not some 'Seireitei Wants YOU!' propaganda, despite the fact that I severely doubt the higher-ups have agreed to you propositioning me."

Byakuya took a deep breath, some tension leaving his shoulders. "I want to bring you back to Soul Society and help us find the cause of the hollows forming. This... _contagion _that has taken root in Rukongai's people is not stopping and I fear it will spread until the balance is destroyed.

"So, Kurosaki Ichigo, will you help us?"

Ichigo sighed and scrubbed his face with callused hands. Honestly, Ichigo could still hear that 'hero' part of himself, telling him to bust right back into Soul Society, beat down everyone in his path and damn the concequences. Right after that, nearly one hundred years of anger at the injustice of his exile and subsequent loneliness (Urahara's shop didn't count) told him to turn his back on Byakuya's request and never look back.

But the _father _in him... Ichigo knew he would still do anything for his children, for all his family and his nakama.

There really wasn't much of a choice, was there?

Ichigo lowered his hands and pinned Byakuya with a hard stare. " If I do this, it's not going to stop at hollows. Those will merely be the catalyst. You need to fight with me from the other side of the wall, against all those rules and laws you care so much about. The starvation, rampant crime lords, everything has got to stop. You can no longer turn a blind eye to the suffering of the people you are supposed to care for. If you do that, then... then I'll help you."

Ichigo thrust his hand out toward his newest partner in crime, and Byakuya shook it without hesitation. A wicked grin split Ichigo's face, reminiscent of his reckless past.

"Well. This should be fun."

* * *

Disclaimer: Bleach is owned by Tite Kubo and his affiliates... written for fun, and not a cent was made

* * *

_Wow... Um, hi, everyone! It's been a while..._

_Oops?_

_Sigh, I'll offer no excuses, because it's was really horrible of me to have left this blowing in the wind for so long. But I think that all this time away has really seen me mature and grow as a writer. I cringe as I read through my old fics, and going back and editing is definitely on my list of things to do._

_THANK YOU, from the bottom of my heart, to everyone who didn't give up on me and my fics. I've been humbled by how you've stuck by and reviewed even years after. Contagion was never far from my mind, even when I've gotten pulled into other fandoms. I don't regret that, It's how I've finally found my voice (or what I want to sound like, anyway :D), but I do regret that I've kept you waiting for three and a half years. I deeply apologize for that._

_I have a long way to go yet with this fic, but if you'll bear with me, I'll do my best to make the wait worthwhile._

_Love,_  
_isphira_


	4. Chapter 3

_Thanks for the awesome reviews!_

Contagion

Chapter 3

A few miles worth of flash steps and Ichigo and Byakuya arrived at Urahara's shop, where Byakuya had proposed to continue their conversation. A yawning Jinta waved them in through the old rice paper doors and went about his chores. The two men walked through the narrow halls and found Urahara exactly where they expected to, drinking tea and looking unsurprised to see them standing in his doorway.

"Why, hello there Kuchiki-taichou, how marvelous to see you again after so many years! Last I saw you-"

"Save it for later, geta-boshi," grumbled Ichigo. "What details do you have about the deal in Rukongai?"

Sighing dramatically, Urahara pulled out his fan and began waving it lazily as he imparted his knowledge to them. Which was disappointingly sparse.

And what he _had_ been able to hack from Kurotsuchi's information wasn't pretty. As far as any tests went, it seemed that souls had become hollows in just the same way as pluses on the living plane. Missing chains of fate not-withstanding. Eyewitness accounts supported this, there was no shortage of people around to see the process.

Family and friends testified to the victims growing dissatisfaction with their lives, some told of visible obssessive behaviors.

"That's all the information they have so far. None of the Twelfth Division shinigami have been able to get clear data due to the way they pop up from completely random districts all across Soul Society." At this point, Urahara had replaced the tea with sake and was pouring for all of them.

"Is there _anything_ to go off of, Kisuke? How am I suppose to help? I can't talk to every single person and just make them as happy as they've ever been," Ichigo said, spreading his hands in a helpless gesture.

"Ah, ah! You forget that I, and now Kuchiki-taichou, don't believe that this is a naturally occuring phnenomenon."

"Okay, then how is this happening?" There was silence for a moment.

"We don't know yet."

Ichigo threw his hands up in exasperation. Honestly, what did they want him to do? Wave a magic wand? Pray to the gods for answers?

"Then why the hell am I here?"

"Now wait just a moment, Kurosaki-kun, we do know one thing. It's what made us suspicious in the first place. I ran the samples that were recovered through my own tests and I found that each hollow has a scrap of signiture that is identical to all other samples that we have."

"But the souls are totally unrelated to each other, right? They're all in seperate districts?"

"Exactly, and this is where you come in."

At this point, Byakuya spoke up. "We want you to go into Rukongai, specifically north sixty-seventh, to try and witness a turning soul. We need your unique expertise as a vaizard to try and narrow down what has been happening.

"The catch, Kurosaki-san, is to not be discovered there. You will have to completely blend in, which means if you do come across an... event... then you will have to restrain yourself and analyze the situation. We need information before everything else. After Urahara-san has studied the data, then we can be proactive and adjust accordingly."

Ichigo stared at the noble with an incredulous look on his face before taking an inelegant gulp of his sake. "You're both crazy," he wheezed out.

Silence surrounded the table. Ichigo tried to think through the beginnings of a spectacular headache. They wanted him to stand by and watch as people are completely slaughtered and _gather data_ on these hollows. He was baffled as to why they had come to him. They needed him to be subtle.

He didn't _do_ subtle.

But he could understand their reasoning. He was powerful enough to be able to take care anything that might come across his path. He could recognize a hollow's reiryouku with ridiculous ease (nowadays he could sense a hollow before he got the call from Urahara). It had been ninety-seven years since he had stepped foot in Soul Society, and even longer in Rukongai; he doubted anyone but those he had worked closely with would be able to sense and recognize him if he was hiding in Rukongai, especially with his seal active, and they would all be in Seireitei going about their lives.

Ichigo realized he was thinking himself into accepting their argument, and gave up. He was going and this seemed to be the most logical way. It may not work, and he couldn't begin to contemplate the consequences if he was caught, but he said he would help. So he would do it their way, it's not like he had a plan.

"Alright, then, geniuses, how will you sneak me in?"

"Since the Dangai has been under tight surveilance for quite a few years now, so there's only one way."

"But before that! You need a few tools to help you out." Urahara called for Tessai, who came in and deposited a tray onto the table before retreating again. Ichigo leaned over curiously and took the objects in hand.

"In case you do run into someone familiar with your reiryouku, here is your old substitute badge. I've redesigned it to scramble your unique signiture and further suppress your power. I would still run if your see anyone, that hair of yours is pretty recognizable, you know."

Ichigo flipped him off.

"Then there's this, an untracable phone to contact me or Kuchiki-taichou for any reason. It also doubles to automatically send me information on all the souls within range. It's quite delicate, so please be gentle. Lastly, a packet of all the information we have about this situation. Okay, Kuchiki-taichou, take it away."

He nodded and stood, beckoning Ichigo to do the same. "Most importantly, Kurosaki, be wary. You are once again our best and only hope."

In less than a second he drew his zanpakutou and firmly stamped Ichigo on the forehead. The shocked man barely registered this before he was seeing the clichéd white light, a chuckling Urahara and ever-stoic Byakuya fading from his sight.

"Seriously? Come on!"

xlxlxlx

The next thing Ichigo sees is a bright blue sky, drifting clouds and a number of children staring down at him, giggling behind their hands.

"Hey, Daidaiiro-san, yeh new 'round here? Yeh look fresh dead, yanno."

"Yeah, yeah, kid. Where am I?" Ichigo scowled and lifted himself to sitting on the dirt path and stash his miraculously transported items under his plain wool shirt (accompanied with dark breeches). A quick panicked check on his soul confirmed his power was still there. People walked by with barely a glance at him.

"Welcome to the sixty-seventh North District of Rukongai , Daidaiiro-san!"

Ichigo slapped a hand to his face with a world-weary sigh.

"Of course."

* * *

Disclaimer: Bleach is owned by Tite Kubo and his affiliates... written for fun, and not a cent was made

* * *

AN: Okay, so here's the next chapter! I know it short, but I promise to make each chapter at least 1000 words. RL is still hectic, moving back to Indiana in less than 3 weeks, so there's a lot to get done. Later chapters will most likely to be longer, but I figured I'd put worries to rest after such a long absence before and give you a little update.

Daidaiiro - means orange. It's an older term than orenji and since it's fuedal era, I figured that would be best. Google and Yahoo!answers are my friends!

Anyway, lots of dialogue, but it was important to get the ball rolling and Ichigo into Soul Society. I'm counting on the action and description to start picking up now that most of the reasoning is out in the open and the plot will be moving right along.

What do you think? I'm expecting a lot of questions, but I won't promise to answer! ;P


	5. Chapter 4

Contagion

Chapter 4

The children ran away laughing when Ichigo waved a hand half-heartedly at them. He stood and landed his fists on his hips, thinking of all the things he would do to Urahara that would _hurt_ when he saw him next.

He was sidetracked from his homicidal thoughts when he realized he could feel the abundance of spirit particles that surrounded him, seeming almost ridiculous compared to the living world. A tension he never acknowledged at the very core of his soul relaxed as he took a deep breath and for a moment Ichigo was overwhelmed with relief.

_This _is where he belonged.

"Oi," Ichigo heard, right before he felt a friendly hand on his shoulder. He turned and saw a man easily twice his 'age' grinning at him. He was of typical Japanese make: black hair, dark eyes, with a golden complexion that was half-covered in bandages.

"May I help you?" Ichigo asked and the man laughed at him.

"Seems I should be askin' ya that, yeah? Welcome to Rukongai, stranger, though it may no' be very welcomin' at the moment."

"Hmm," Ichigo hummed and drew back enough to offer his hand. "Name's Kurosaki Ichigo." The man took his hand and pumped it heartily.

"Oshiro Atsuo, nice to meet ya, now let's get ya situated. Follow me." So Ichigo learned the basics of life in Rukongai as they walked down the dirt path in the hot sun. The economy was mostly based on a bartering system; coin was still accepted, but it was so rare that most people in the higher districts never saw one.

Being a new arrival Ichigo had nothing to trade, so his best bet would be to go to one of the hostels that were scattered around the district. Atsuo mentioned some of the closest ones and said that they were easy to find, just look for a yellow cloth over the door. It was there that Ichigo would find friends and maybe family, since it was unlikely that he would find any relatives that he had known when he was alive.

"An' the more friends ya got, the better, Kurosaki-san! Never hurts ta have a friendly face 'round the corner when you need 'em most. There's b'n trouble brewin' lately, Hollows poppin' their ugly faces up where ya least expect 'em."

"Hollows?" inquired Ichigo, for appearances sake, and that set off Atsuo into a bemusing rant about Shinigami. It seemed they were tolerated here, but mostly they were seen as interlopers and never failed to bring trouble when they came.

Ichigo was hard-pressed to not burst into laughter, but he did learn some important details. Apparently there was a bi-monthly patrol, to make sure there was nothing too suspicious going on, and to take away the ones that had some measure of power.

"Oh! Tha' remind's me, if ya ge' hungry, that means ya got some power in ya. Normal folk don' ge' hungry, so tha's a sure-fire way a knowin'. We may eat it f'r taste, during festivals an' such, but we don' got the appetite f'r it."

"I'll keep that in mind." Ichigo didn't know how he was going to work that out. He needed to blend in with the 'normal folk' and to do that, he couldn't go around buying enough food for three meals a day. That would be the best way to get caught. He left that worrying thought for later.

"Okay! If ya follow this road 'til ya can't go no further and take a left, then you'll find one a them hostels I was tellin' ya 'bout. I'd take ya m'self, but I hafta ge' back ta my wife before she's got a reason to nag. Good luck, Kurosaki-san!"

"Thank you for everything, Oshiro-san." Ichigo gave the man a little bow of farewell and they parted ways. He thought for a moment and decided he had nothing better to do than find that hostel so he weaved his way through the crowd, turning left where he was bid.

The more he watched the people as he walked, the more he could see how tense and wary they were. Which made sense if this district was recently hit with the hollow appearances like Urahara and Byakuya had said, and Atsuo's bandages had more than hinted at. Though, now that he saw it, he remembered the stories that Rukia and Renji had told so long ago, about the little gang they had formed and stealing food when they were hungry.

That struck a chord with him and his own food predicament, and his thoughts whirled with half-made plans. If he could somehow bargain with one of the orphan gangs, bribe them or something, into buying food for him, then maybe then he could stay low-key and not starve to death. That would mean he needed money, and for that he needed to find a job to kick-start his little operation, and it would be totally useless if he couldn't find a group of kids to do this in the first place. Which would be a hard enough task on its own, but when he was virtually stranded in the middle of a maze?

He closed his eyes and massaged his temples, trying to ward off an impending headache. This kind of thinking just wasn't his style. The sooner he found this halfway house, the sooner at least one of his problems would be solved.

Which, ironically, landed him smack dab in the middle of a totally different, but much more immediate, problem of it's own.

He found himself being stared at by three hulking brutes blocking his way. A quick peek around them and he could see that he had arrived at his destination. In the doorway, decorated with the yellow cloth he had been told about, a richly dressed man stood in front of a woman (he guessed the owner of the house) with a deep scowl on her face. She spared Ichigo a glance before turning that glare back toward the man.

"Come now, Kouki-san, there's no need for this," was all he heard before he was nearly stepped on by Mountain No. 1.

"Move on," he rumbled.

Ichigo tilted his chin up and said, "Sure, but I'm actually heading in there, so if you'll let me pass..." and tried to sidestep around No. 3, but was blocked. The others shifted to surround him in an attempt at intimidation.

"Come back later," said No. 2

Okay, so Ichigo knew he was being reckless. He'd arrived less than an hour ago and he was already getting into trouble. But if there was one thing Ichigo hated more than anything, it was bullies.

"You know, I'd really rather not. I'm kind of tired, just a little annoyed, and I'd like a room here. So. Maybe you wouldn't mind getting out of my way?" He tried to step the other way and then sighed when he was roughly shoved back into the growing audience, someone catching him and setting him on his feet.

Ichigo brushed imaginary dirt off his shoulders. "You're sure you won't let me pass?"

"No more warnings," said No. 1.

"That's fine," Ichigo said, and quicker than any eye could see he punched No. 1 in the stomach. The thug doubled over with a pained gasp, clutching his middle.

"Woah, friend, you aren't looking too good," mocked Ichigo. "Why don't you lie down. I'm sure you'll feel better soon." Ichigo 'helped' the thug to lie on the dirt road. The other two obviously didn't realize what was going on according to the confused looks they gave each other and Ichigo, but they rushed him anyway.

Ichigo bent down under the pretense of checking No. 1's temperature and as he predicted, they ran head first into each other and joined their cohort on the ground. Quick jabs to their heads ensured they wouldn't be getting up anytime soon.

"I think these three need to get to a clinic. Maybe it's something they ate?" The crowd did nothing to help them of course. He shrugged and stood straight.

Stepping over the mound of bodies to face the house's owner, Ichigo saw that the man had a scowl on his face, but that was quickly replaced with a wide smile when he noticed Ichigo looking. He strolled over, not sparing a glance for his bodyguards and presented himself with a small bow. Ichigo could recognize his type from a mile away. Rich, self-satisfied, prideful, _hated _being ignored and arrogant beyond reason; as soon as they don't get their way they lose the polite facade and their true nature comes out.

"Konnichiwa. My name is Hara Takuya-dono. Just call on me and anything you may need, I can deliver, for a price of course. Forgive me, however, I seem to have forgotten your name...?"

"You haven't. Excuse me," Ichigo said, and walked right past the arrogant bastard.

"What do yeh want, gaki," asked the woman impatiently. "I'm busy dealing wi' this."

"Hello, oba-san, do you have any rooms available?" He'd barely finished speaking before he heard the metallic 'shing' of a dagger being pulled from it's sheath, and the ex-shinigami decided he'd had enough of stealth for one day. He pivoted on his toes and crouched at the same time, which gave him all the space he needed to grab Takuya's wrist (really, an overhand stab?) and twisted sharply, forcing him to drop the knife.

As soon as that was taken care of, Ichigo pinned his wrist behind his back and swept his feet out from under him. They ended up on the dirt with Ichigo's knee in the whimpering man's spine, one hand holding his arms captive. He leaned over to murmur in Takuya's ear, so that no one could listen.

"I don't know who you are, and I don't care. But if you come back here and harrass this woman again, I _will_ care. And you_ don't want that_. So I suggest you run."

As soon as Ichigo let him up, he did.

"So, about that room?" he asked as he dusted off his hands.

She sent a hard stare his way before saying, "I don' want no trouble, gaki, so yeh better keep it to yerself, yeh hear?" At Ichigo's innocent nod, she harrumphed and jerked her head toward the door.

"C'mon then, there's a room fer yeh."

* * *

_Disclaimer: Bleach is owned by Tite Kubo and his affiliates... written for fun, and not a cent was made_

* * *

_AN: Alrighty then, another chapter rolled out! I had a bit of trouble with this one, the second half did not want to cooperate at all. But I think it turned out okay. What do you think?_

_I don't know when the next chapter will be, I'll be super busy moving 900 miles across the US. But on a good note, I already know what I want to write, so that's a relief._

_Also, thank you so much for all your awesome reviews! I have all your questions staring me in the face on my outline, and they will be answered._

_Until next time!_


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